The Zoo
by SarahMel
Summary: A vignette. Mary contemplates her life and her relationship with Marshall. Mary's POV. Spoilers: everything to date.


The Zoo

Disclaimer: Not mine, never were, never will be. But if the writers aren't going to give us what we want, sometimes we have to take matters into our own hands. Don't sue, I've got nothing, since I'm unemployed.

Stroke, glide, stroke, glide. As Mary pushed herself through the water, she reveled in the peace and quiet that came from swimming laps. It was unlike, say, going to the gym, with the clanking of metal plates and the whirr of treadmills, to say nothing of the chatter of gym goers and the loud obnoxious music that plays over the loudspeaker. All exercise provided a distraction for her, but somehow, the pool was the one that gave her time to think.

It hadn't exactly been the easiest year, or two. Really, it hadn't been the easiest life, but it was what it was. Get kidnapped, get engaged, get shot, break off engagement. Younger sister moves home, mother moves home, mother moves out, and now younger sister appeared to be getting her life in order. It was as if maybe the universe had decided to finally cut her some slack. Maybe for a week or two she shouldn't have to worry about everyone else and she could think about herself for a change.

A scary thought, thinking about herself, not worrying about everyone else. That therapist she'd seen a couple times would be proud at this moment of introspection. What did she really want? What did she need? It was hard to say, there were so many pieces of her life that seemed to not quite fit.

The one constant in her life was work, and with work comes Marshall. Lord, that guy was a nut. Her best friend, but she was pretty sure he was slightly crazy, in a good way, of course. With that encyclopedic brain of his, his childlike pajamas and his bad-ass lawman self. Everyone should be so lucky to have a Marshall in their life. Someone she could trust completely, who would take a bullet for her, who brought her back to earth when things started to spin out of control. It was Marshall who helped clear Brandi's name, and Marshall who risked his life every day to go to the neighborhood where she was shot to find the shooter.

Mary reached the end of the lane and came up for a drink and to catch her breath. It was a beautiful night, clear and starry. Brandi was at Peter's, so no one was home. Mary debated getting out of the pool and going inside and calling Marshall for dinner, but instead she ducked back into the water and decided to swim a few more laps. Not because she needed to, but because she wanted to; she wanted this time to herself for a few more minutes.

Her thoughts drifted back to Marshall and their relationship, their friendship. She knew no one else who had a partnership like theirs, in life, in work, or anywhere. An exotic animal. That was how Marshall had described her once, and he was her keeper. She'd never really thought about things that way until he mentioned it, on that horrible day when she thought she was going to lose him. She didn't even have to beg him not to quit, she just told him he couldn't, and he agreed. Now that she reflected on that she couldn't believe it. Why didn't he put up more of a fight? Besides the obvious reason of being in serious physical distress at the moment. They'd never really talked about it again, but he obviously turned the job down. What did that mean?

It was getting colder out, she could feel it through the water. She needed to wrap this up, go inside and figure out some dinner and get ready for tomorrow. Just a few more laps she decided.

Marshall never took the job. And he'd been there for her when she was losing it after the kidnapping. And he was there for her when she got engaged, and there for her when she was struggling with the pile of conflicting emotions about Raph. Aside from his brief moment of "verbal impotence" when she told him that she and Raph had broken up, he'd never let her down when she needed him. Who else could she rely on like him? No one.

Her life was a zoo. No doubt about it. Alcoholic mother, deadbeat bank robbing father, younger sister who couldn't quite get her life together, a pair of half-siblings she knew next to nothing about, and on top of that, she dealt with crazy people for a living! Well, some people were crazy. So if her life was a zoo, and she was an exotic animal, and Marshall was her keeper, what did that all mean for her?

Mary climbed out of the pool, wrapped a towel around herself and walked inside. Her phone was ringing. It was Marshall.

"Hey, what's up?"

"Starved. Want to grab something to eat?"

"Definitely. Breakfast?"

"Mary, its 8 pm. Seriously?"

"You know how I feel about pancakes."

"Fine. Be there in 10."

In the end, it was Marshall. It would always be Marshall. Her only friend. Her best friend. Her keeper. And maybe, just maybe, something more.

**********Did you like it? This was my first fanfic EVER. Reviews welcome. Also, I don't have beta, so if someone wants to volunteer, that would increase the chances of me writing something more in the future.*************


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